by Bram Stoker
“There is a trap-door at the bottom of the pew,” said Henry; “it is not only secured down, but it is locked likewise, and I have the key in my possession.”
“Indeed!”
“Yes; immediately beneath is a short flight of stone steps, which conduct at once into the vault.”
“Is it large?”
“No; about the size of a moderate chamber, and with no intricacies about it.”
“There can be no difficulties, then.”
“None whatever, unless we meet with actual personal interruption, which I am inclined to think is very far from likely. All we shall require will be a screwdriver, with which to remove the screws, and then something with which to wrench open the coffin.”
“Those we can easily provide, along with lights,” remarked Mr. Marchdale.
“I hope to Heaven that this visit to the tomb will have the effect of easing your minds, and enabling you to make a successful stand against the streaming torrent of evidence that has poured in upon us regarding this most fearful of apparitions.”
“I do, indeed, hope so,” added Henry; “and now I will go at once to Flora, and endeavour to convince her she is safe without us to-night.”
“By-the-bye, I think,” said Marchdale, “that if we can induce Mr. Chillingworth to come with us, it will be a great point gained in the investigation.”
“He would,” said Henry, “be able to come to an accurate decision with respect to the remains — if any — in the coffin, which we could not.”
“Then have him, by all means,” said George. “He did not seem averse last night to go on such an adventure.”
“I will ask him when he makes his visit this morning upon Flora; and should he not feel disposed to join us, I am quite sure he will keep the secret of our visit.”
All this being arranged, Henry proceeded to Flora, and told her that he and George, and Mr. Marchdale wished to go out for about a couple of hours in the evening after dark, if she felt sufficiently well to feel a sense of security without them.
Flora changed colour, and slightly trembled, and then, as if ashamed of her fears, she said, —
“Go, go; I will not detain you. Surely no harm can come to me in presence of my mother.”
“We shall not be gone longer than the time I mention to you,” said Henry.
“Oh, I shall be quite content. Besides, am I to be kept thus in fear all my life? Surely, surely not. I ought, too, to learn to defend myself.”
Henry caught at the idea, as he said, —
“If fire-arms were left you, do you think you would have courage to use them?”
“I do, Henry.”
“Then you shall have them; and let me beg of you to shoot any one without the least hesitation who shall come into your chamber.”
“I will, Henry. If ever human being was justified in the use of deadly weapons, I am now. Heaven protect me from a repetition of the visit to which I have now been once subjected. Rather, oh, much rather would I die a hundred deaths than suffer what I have suffered.”
“Do not allow it, dear Flora, to press too heavily upon your mind in dwelling upon it in conversation. I still entertain a sanguine expectation that something may arise to afford a far less dreadful explanation of what has occurred than what you have put upon it. Be of good cheer, Flora, we shall go one hour after sunset, and return in about two hours from the time at which we leave here, you may be assured.”
Notwithstanding this ready and courageous acquiescence of Flora in the arrangement, Henry was not without his apprehension that when the night should come again, her fears would return with it; but he spoke to Mr. Chillingworth upon the subject, and got that gentleman’s ready consent to accompany them.
He promised to meet them at the church porch exactly at nine o’clock, and matters were all arranged, and Henry waited with much eagerness and anxiety now for the coming night, which he hoped would dissipate one of the fearful deductions which his imagination had drawn from recent circumstances.
He gave to Flora a pair of pistols of his own, upon which he knew he could depend, and he took good care to load them well, so that there could be no likelihood whatever of their missing fire at a critical moment.
“Now, Flora,” he said, “I have seen you use fire-arms when you were much younger than you are now, and therefore I need give you no instructions. If any intruder does come, and you do fire, be sure you take a good aim, and shoot low.”
“I will, Henry, I will; and you will be back in two hours?”
“Most assuredly I will.”
The day wore on, evening came, and then deepened into night. It turned out to be a cloudy night, and therefore the moon’s brilliance was nothing near equal to what it had been on the preceding night Still, however, it had sufficient power over the vapours that frequently covered it for many minutes together, to produce a considerable light effect upon the face of nature, and the night was consequently very far, indeed, from what might be called a dark one.
George, Henry, and Marchdale, met in one of the lower rooms of the house, previous to starting upon their expedition; and after satisfying themselves that they had with them all the tools that were necessary, inclusive of the same small, but well-tempered iron crow-bar with which Marchdale had, on the night of the visit of the vampyre, forced open the door of Flora’s chamber, they left the hall, and proceeded at a rapid pace towards the church.
“And Flora does not seem much alarmed,” said Marchdale, “at being left alone?”
“No,” replied Henry, “she has made up her mind with a strong natural courage which I knew was in her disposition to resist as much as possible the depressing effects of the awful visitation she has endured.”
“It would have driven some really mad.”
“It would, indeed; and her own reason tottered on its throne, but, thank Heaven, she has recovered.”
“And I fervently hope that, through her life,” added Marchdale, “she may never have such another trial.”
“We will not for a moment believe that such a thing can occur twice.”
“She is one among a thousand. Most young girls would never at all have recovered the fearful shock to the nerves.”
“Not only has she recovered,” said Henry, “but a spirit, which I am rejoiced to see, because it is one which will uphold her, of resistance now possesses her.”
“Yes, she actually — I forgot to tell you before — but she actually asked me for arms to resist any second visitation.”
“You much surprise me.”
“Yes, I was surprised, as well as pleased, myself.”
“I would have left her one of my pistols had I been aware of her having made such a request. Do you know if she can use fire-arms?”
“Oh, yes; well.”
“What a pity. I have them both with me.”
“Oh, she is provided.”
“Provided?”
“Yes; I found some pistols which I used to take with me on the continent, and she has them both well loaded, so that if the vampyre makes his appearance, he is likely to meet with rather a warm reception.”
“Good God! was it not dangerous?”
“Not at all, I think.”
“Well, you know best, certainly, of course. I hope the vampyre may come, and that we may have the pleasure, when we return, of finding him dead. By-the-bye, I — I — . Bless me, I have forgot to get the materials for lights, which I pledged myself to do.”
“How unfortunate.”
“Walk on slowly, while I run back and get them.”
“Oh, we are too far — ”
“Hilloa!” cried a man at this moment, some distance in front of them.
“It is Mr. Chillingworth,” said Henry.
“Hilloa,” cried the worthy doctor again. “Is that you, my friend, Henry Bannerworth?”
“It is,” cried Henry.
Mr. Chillingworth now came up to them and said, —
“I was before my time, so rather than wait at the c
hurch porch, which would have exposed me to observation perhaps, I thought it better to walk on, and chance meeting with you.”
“You guessed we should come this way?’
“Yes, and so it turns out, really. It is unquestionably your most direct route to the church.”
“I think I will go back,” said Mr Marchdale.
“Back!” exclaimed the doctor; “what for?”
“I forgot the means of getting lights. We have candles, but no means of lighting them.”
“Make yourselves easy on that score,” said Mr. Chillingworth. “I am never without some chemical matches of my own manufacture, so that as you have the candles, that can be no bar to our going on a once.”
“That is fortunate,” said Henry.
“Very,” added Marchdale; “for it seems a mile’s hard walking for me, or at least half a mile from the hall. Let us now push on.”
They did push on, all four walking at a brisk pace. The church, although it belonged to the village, was not in it. On the contrary, it was situated at the end of a long lane, which was a mile nearly from the village, in the direction of the hall, therefore, in going to it from the hall, that amount of distance was saved, although it was always called and considered the village church.
It stood alone, with the exception of a glebe house and two cottages, that were occupied by persons who held situations about the sacred edifice, and who were supposed, being on the spot, to keep watch and ward over it.
It was an ancient building of the early English style of architecture, or rather Norman, with one of those antique, square, short towers, built of flint stones firmly embedded in cement, which, from time, had acquired almost the consistency of stone itself. There were numerous arched windows, partaking something of the more florid gothic style, although scarcely ornamental enough to be called such. The edifice stood in the centre of a grave-yard, which extended over a space of about half an acre, and altogether it was one of the prettiest and most rural old churches within many miles of the spot.
Many a lover of the antique and of the picturesque, for it was both, went out of his way while travelling in the neighbourhood to look at it, and it had an extensive and well-deserved reputation as a fine specimen of its class and style of building.
In Kent, to the present day, are some fine specimens of the old Roman style of church, building; and, although they are as rapidly pulled down as the abuse of modern architects, and the cupidity of speculators, and the vanity of clergymen can possibly encourage, in older to erect flimsy, Italianised structures in their stead, yet sufficient of them remain dotted over England to interest the traveller. At Walesden there is a church of this description which will well repay a visit. This, then, was the kind of building into which it was the intention of our four friends to penetrate, not on an unholy, or an unjustifiable errand, but on one which, proceeding from good and proper motives, it was highly desirable to conduct in as secret a manner as possible.
The moon was more densely covered by clouds than it had yet been that evening, when they reached the little wicket-gate which led into the churchyard, through which was a regularly used thoroughfare.
“We have a favourable night,” remarked Henry, “for we are not so likely to be disturbed.”
“And now, the question is, how are we to get in?” said Mr. Chillingworth, as he paused, and glanced up at the ancient building.
“The doors,” said George, “would effectually resist us.”
“How can it be done, then?”
“The only way I can think of,” said Henry, “is to get out one of the small diamond-shaped panes of glass from one of the low windows, and then we can one of us put in our hands, and undo the fastening, which is very simple, when the window opens like a door, and it is but a step into the church.”
“A good way,” said Marchdale. “We will lose no time.”
They walked round the church till they came to a very low window indeed, near to an angle of the wall, where a huge abutment struck far out into the burial-ground.
“Will you do it, Henry?” said George.
“Yes. I have often noticed the fastenings. Just give me a slight hoist up, and all will be right.”
George did so, and Henry with his knife easily bent back some of the leadwork which held in one of the panes of glass, and then got it out whole. He handed it down to George, saying, —
“Take this, George. We can easily replace it when we leave, so that there can be no signs left of any one having been here at all.”
George took the piece of thick, dim-coloured glass, and in another moment Henry had succeeded in opening the window, and the mode of ingress to the old church was fair and easy before them all, had there been ever so many.
“I wonder,” said Marchdale, “that a place so inefficiently protected has never been robbed.”
“No wonder at all,” remarked Mr. Chillingworth. “There is nothing to take that I am aware of that would repay anybody the trouble of taking.”
“Indeed!”
“Not an article. The pulpit, to be sure, is covered with faded velvet; but beyond that, and an old box, in which I believe nothing is left but some books, I think there is no temptation.”
“And that, Heaven knows, is little enough, then.”
“Come on,” said Henry. “Be careful; there is nothing beneath the window, and the depth is about two feet.”
Thus guided, they all got fairly into the sacred edifice, and then Henry closed the window, and fastened it on the inside as he said, —
“We have nothing to do now but to set to work opening a way into the vault, and I trust that Heaven will pardon me for thus desecrating the tomb of my ancestors, from a consideration of the object I have in view by so doing.”
“It does seem wrong thus to tamper with the secrets of the tomb,” remarked Mr. Marchdale.
“The secrets of a fiddlestick!” said the doctor. “What secrets has the tomb I wonder?”
“Well, but, my dear sir — ”
“Nay, my dear sir, it is high time that death, which is, then, the inevitable fate of us all, should be regarded with more philosophic eyes than it is. There are no secrets in the tomb but such as may well be endeavoured to be kept secret.”
“What do you mean?”
“There is one which very probably we shall find unpleasantly revealed.”
“Which is that?”
“The not over pleasant odour of decomposed animal remains — beyond that I know of nothing of a secret nature that the tomb can show us.”
“Ah, your profession hardens you to such matters.”
“And a very good thing that it does, or else, if all men were to look upon a dead body as something almost too dreadful to look upon, and by far too horrible to touch, surgery would lose its value, and crime, in many instances of the most obnoxious character, would go unpunished.”
“If we have a light here,” said Henry, “we shall run the greatest chance in the world of being seen, for the church has many windows.”
“Do not have one, then, by any means,” said Mr. Chillingworth. “A match held low down in the pew may enable us to open the vault.”
“That will be the only plan.”
Henry led them to the pew which belonged to his family, and in the floor of which was the trap door.
“When was it last opened?” inquired Marchdale.
“When my father died,” said Henry; “some ten months ago now, I should think.”
“The screws, then, have had ample time to fix themselves with fresh rust.”
“Here is one of my chemical matches,” said Mr. Chillingworth, as he suddenly irradiated the pew with a clear and beautiful flame, that lasted about a minute.
The heads of the screws were easily discernible, and the short time that the light lasted had enabled Henry to turn the key he had brought with him in the lock.
“I think that without a light now,” he said, “I can turn the screws well.”
“Can you?”
“Try it, then.”
Henry did so, and from the screws having very large heads, and being made purposely, for the convenience of removal when required, with deep indentations to receive the screw-driver, he found no difficulty in feeling for the proper places, and extracting the screws without any more light than was afforded to him from the general whitish aspect of the heavens.
“Now, Mr. Chillingworth,” he said “another of your matches, if you please. I have all the screws so loose that I can pick them up with my fingers.”
“Here,” said the doctor.
In another moment the pew was as light as day, and Henry succeeded in taking out the few screws, which he placed in his pocket for their greater security, since, of course, the intention was to replace everything exactly as it was found, in order that not the least surmise should arise in the mind of any person that the vault had been opened, and visited for any purpose whatever, secretly or otherwise.”
“Let us descend,” said Henry. “There is no further obstacle, my friends. Let us descend.”
“If any one,” remarked George, in a whisper, as they slowly descended the stairs which conducted into the vault — ”if any one had told me that I should be descending into a vault for the purpose of ascertaining if a dead body, which had been nearly a century there, was removed or not, and had become a vampyre, I should have denounced the idea as one of the most absurd that ever entered the brain of a human being.”
“We are the very slaves of circumstances,” said Marchdale, “and we never know what we may do, or what we may not. What appears to us so improbable as to border even upon the impossible at one time, is at another the only course of action which appears feasibly open to us to attempt to pursue.”
They had now reached the vault, the floor of which was composed of flat red tiles, laid in tolerable order the one beside the other. As Henry had stated, the vault was by no means of large extent. Indeed, several of the apartments for the living, at the hall, were much larger than was that one destined for the dead.
